Learner-Driven Education vs. Teacher-Led Model
Over the past 100 years, public schools have been the dominant form of education in the US and worldwide. Built during the industrial revolution, large-sized schooling environments replaced the one-room schoolhouses that were popular. The approach these large schools took was one very similar to what was seen in factories of those days - one teacher teaching a large room of children the same knowledge at the same time. Students were tested at the same time and expected to all move at the same pace.
Today, that model of education is still the predominant way of teaching.
However, over the past decade, a new approach to education has started gaining popularity as an alternative to teacher-led education. The emergence of the personalized education software served as a catalyst to learner-driven education, popularized by Laura and Jeff Sandefer’s Acton Academy.
This article focuses the differences between a Teacher-Led and Learner-Driven education and why a Learner-Driven model may be a better alternative for many students today.
Learner-Driven Education
Learner-driven education is an approach towards education that puts the learner at the center of the learning process, empowering them to take control of their own education. Over the past decade, this approach has grown in popularity versus the traditional teacher-led model. The first Acton Academy opened in 2008. In 2019, there were ~150 Acton Academies and today, there are over 300 Actons opened worldwide.
The Learner-Driven model has proven to be highly effective in helping raise independent self-learners. Equally important, the research indicates that giving agency of learning to children (or even adults) leads to happiness. According to authors William Stixrud and Ned Johnson in The Self-Driven Child: The Science and Sense of Giving Your Kids More Control Over Their Lives, "Agency may be the one most important factor in human happiness and well-being."
When we chose to open up Acton Academy Columbus, we had two goals in our mind when it came to our daughter’s education. We wanted to give her every opportunity to:
Learn the skills for the 21st century - for whatever the future may hold.
Find happiness in learning
And we firmly believe the learner-driven model is the best model of education for both of those things.
There are several key features of learner-driven education that make it an effective and engaging way for children to learn:
Student choice: Learners are given some freedom to choose what they want to learn, and how they want to learn it. This allows them to pursue their own interests and passions, leading to a deeper engagement with the material and a greater sense of ownership over their learning. At Acton, students still need to learn the basic core skills - Math, Reading, Writing. But there is no one path to completing the work. And when it comes time for projects, they can choose how to approach / complete their projects. We also allow learners to come up with their own topics they’re interested in and incorporate that into our schedule.
Collaborative learning: Learners are encouraged to work together and share their knowledge with one another. This promotes a sense of community and helps students to learn from each other, as well as from their teachers. At Acton, peer-to-peer learning is a really important part of the education process. A collaborative learning environment is a natural growth-mindset environment where younger students learn from older ones. Similarly, older learners become masters of their domain as they teach / lead younger learners.
Personalized learning: In learner-driven education, students are able to tailor their learning experience to fit their individual needs and learning styles. This personalized approach is more effective for many students, as it allows them to learn at their own pace and in a way that works best for them. A traditional teacher-led environment is a fixed-paced environment. Students learn at the pace a teacher deems appropriate for the classroom. Acton is a self-paced environment where learners can move really fast through some topics they grasp quickly and they can take their time on other topics that are more challenging for them.
Real-world application: In learner-driven education, students apply what they have learned to real-world situations and problems. This helps to make learning more meaningful and relevant, and helps students to see the practical value of what they are learning. At Acton Academy Columbus, our afternoons focus on project-based learning - often STEAM / STEM and Entrepreneurship projects with real-world applications.
So why is giving children their own agency in education so important?
First and foremost, it leads to greater happiness and engagement with learning. When students are able to choose what they want to learn and how they want to learn it, they are more likely to enjoy their education and be motivated to learn. This leads to better academic outcomes and a more positive attitude towards learning overall.
In a fixed-pace model, the teacher is in control of the learning process, and students are simply expected to follow along. This doesn't give students a sense of ownership or responsibility over their own learning, which can be demotivating.
In addition, learner-driven education helps to develop important skills and qualities in children, such as critical thinking, problem-solving, and independence. These skills are essential for success in both school and in life, and are developed naturally through the learner-driven approach.
If Learner-Driven education sounds like it might be a good fit for you and your family, reach out to us, schedule a tour, or find an Acton Academy near you.